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Doc: Big 12 no-go bad for UC now, but how about long-term?

The Big 12 isn’t going to expand. It’s not going away, either, which is great news if you’re a fan of the comedy caused by the conference’s clunky maneuverings the last two years. Expand, don’t expand, fall into a sinkhole somewhere south of Lubbock.

The Big 12 isn’t going to expand. It’s not going away, either, which is great news if you’re a fan of the comedy caused by the conference’s clunky maneuverings the last two years. Expand, don’t expand, fall into a sinkhole somewhere south of Lubbock. Just take your amateur politics and go away, yeah? (That includes you, David Boren. Open mouth, insert boot.)

That said, the decision is not great if you are a fan of UC athletics.

Forgive the Bearcats for feeling rejected and a little used. They prepped for their Big 12 closeup to the tune of $86 million, more if you add the Fifth Third Arena redo and the contract extensions (look, our coaching situation is stable!) given Tommy Tuberville and Mick Cronin.

UC’s wannabe status is a bit demeaning. Not for its genuine pursuit of a bigger league and lots more TV money. But for its rejection, again. The Bearcats are like the unpopular rich kid at school who hopes to make friends by handing out $10 bills in the lunchroom.

All that money spent on perfume and makeup and the Bearcats can’t get the magazine cover. They’ve swung and missed twice now, with the Big 12 and the ACC. They’ll never be in the Big 10 as long as Ohio State’s a member. The Pac-12’s a little out there, geographically speaking – Pullman, WA, anyone? – and the SEC ain’t interested.

In the moment, this is bad.

Long-term, maybe not so much.

UC won’t be getting the $25 mil in TV money it would have, had it been selected as Team 11 or 12. That was the arrangement the Big 12 had with its TV partners, ESPN and Fox. The two networks didn’t like that. What TV wants, TV gets, so now the 12 will talk with its TV bosses about a new contract that includes a conference title game. And a little extra for its current 10 members.

Boolah-boolah? Moolah-moolah!

UC could use that cash, yesterday. That stings. So does the notion that when this whole mess conglomerates in a decade or less, resulting in four 16-team superconferences, UC absolutely, positively must be in the sainted 64, lest its athletics return to the days of student-athletes enjoying wholesome exercise. A spot in a Power 5 conference now would all but seal that deal.

Then again... why would any school want to align itself with the Big 12 now?

A Power 5 league with a middling record of football success, which at the moment seems unlikely to include a playoff team.

A league that will disintegrate, er, evolve, in 2025 when its deal to stay as one expires. See ya, Texas and Oklahoma.

A league whose future was ruled upon Monday by two interim presidents and another saying goodbye. That is, three of the 10 voters cast a vote for someone else’s future.

A league that has taken more than a year (and counting) to make one relatively straightforward decision.

These people are like baseball owners. You could put all 10 of them in a room with one clock on the wall, and they couldn’t agree on the time.

Wow. What a great opportunity.

Oklahoma president Boren, so publicly supportive of UC’s bid, earlier this year said the Big 12 would be “psychologically disadvantaged’’ without expansion and a conference title game. Boren flipped then flopped. By the time of the vote, his stance had changed like the seasons. Thanks for the support, Dave.

Adding a school required a “super-majority’’ of eight votes. No school got that. UC’s admission would have eased West Virginia’s travel woes, though it’s unclear whether the Mountaineers wanted a travel partner more than they didn’t want recruiting competition.

UC would have held its own in basketball and football, and would have been an academic plus. Its TV market was a selling point, as well.

So now what?

The Bearcats have facilities that make them more attractive the next time around. They are battle-tested and wiser for the spurns. This won’t be the last belch by a big conference. UC needs to be prepared when the next one comes. Meantime, go Big 12.